Ferndale parole violator charged with attempted burglary

Catherine Kavanaugh

Published 12:00 am, Tuesday, October 23, 2012

FERNDALE -- A parole absconder was charged Tuesday with the attempted burglary of a house on Edgewood Avenue, where a resident had shot twice Friday at a man trying to break in through a bedroom window.

The suspect, Jeffrey Paul Reiher, 32, was arrested Sunday night at a gas station in Redford after a tipster reported seeing a silver pickup truck with a distinct logo matching the description of the widely publicized getaway vehicle.

The Redford caller described the occupant of the truck, which was at the Marathon gas station near Telegraph Road and I-696. Ferndale police relayed the information to Redford police, who made the arrest.

Reiher was charged with first-degree, attempted home invasion, which is a five-year felony. Magistrate Patrick Brennan set bond at $50,000 cash/surety and ordered police to collect DNA samples from the defendant.

The pickup had been stolen from a Livonia business called Oxbow and bears the business logo. It also has been linked to a possible burglary in Troy.

Reiher already was wanted by the Michigan Department of Corrections for violating his parole in Lincoln Park. He was convicted of an August 2011 larceny from a building in Wayne County. His criminal record goes back to 2008 with other convictions for receiving and concealing a stolen vehicle, fleeing police and operating a chop shop in Wayne County; and breaking into a vehicle and receiving and concealing a stolen vehicle in Oakland County.

The attempted Ferndale break-in happened about 10:10 a.m. Friday. A 34-year-old resident was home when he heard glass breaking in the back of the house. Police said he is a U.S. Army veteran and armed himself with a handgun. He fired two shots at the burglar who was climbing into the house through the window but missed.

The crook fled and the homeowner ran to his front door and saw the silver pickup truck pulling out of his driveway. He fired two more shots and called police.

Ferndale police asked the public to help locate the pickup truck not knowing if it or the would-be burglar had been shot. Neither had, said Lt. Bill Wilson.

The homeowner isn't facing any charges, Wilson added.

"He didn't break any laws," he said. "If someone is breaking into your house you can defend yourself with deadly force."

Wilson said it appears Reiher acted on his own and didn't have an accomplice or getaway driver.

Reiher goes by four aliases and has eight tattoos, including one of the devil on his shoulder. He will be back in court at 1 p.m. Nov. 1 for a pre-exam conference.